We weren't just struggling in our sin, we were spiritually dead until God, in His great love and mercy, made us alive through grace by faith in Jesus Christ. Now that we've been given new life, we're called to walk in the good works God has already prepared for us, living as grateful trophies of His grace rather than trying to earn His favor.

You were dead

God made you alive 

Live the life He prepared 

Life Group Discussion:

JP said, "Dead people don't need advice, they need resurrection." Where do you find yourself trying to "try harder" instead of depending on Jesus?

The words "But God" completely change the story. Can you share a "But God" moment where His grace redirected your life?

Paul says we're saved for good works, not by good works. What is the difference, and why does it matter?

What is one practical step you can take this week to "walk in the works God prepared" for you?

June 21, 2026

John Elmore 

Psalm 34

Psalm 34 shows us that following Jesus can’t be borrowed from someone else’s story, you must personally taste and see that He is good by trusting Him in your fear, pain, and need. David’s testimony in the cave reminds us that Jesus hears us, stays near to us in suffering, gives peace in the middle of trouble, and invites us to live boldly by sharing what He’s done and resting in the promise of eternal life.

Testify to others about Jesus

Ask God for answers

Seek the Lord and peace 

Trust God with your troubles 

Endure afflictions because of Christ 

Life Group Discussion:

If you really believed someone’s eternity was at stake, how might it change the way you pray for and engage the people around you this week?

Is there an area of your life right now where you’re tempted to panic, control the outcome, or rely on yourself instead of bringing it honestly before God?

What practically helps stir your affection for God, Scripture, worship, prayer, silence, community, serving, and how can you intentionally build more of that into your week?

When life feels crushing, do you tend to carry the weight yourself or cast it on God? What usually keeps you from surrendering it to Him?

As we are reminded that the Christian life is not freedom from affliction, but confidence that Jesus will deliver us fully in the end. How does that challenge the way you normally think about hardship, suffering, or unanswered prayer?

Life can easily become a cycle of routines, responsibilities, and distractions, but Exodus 3 reminds us that Jesus steps into our ordinary lives to awaken us to His presence, invite us into His mission, and sustain us with His power. Just as God met Moses in the middle of his monotony, He is calling us out of comfort and into a life of purpose, dependence, and kingdom impact.

Christ's Presence Awakens You

Christ's Mission Includes You

Christ's Power Sustains You

Life Group Discussion:

What routines, distractions, or struggles make it easy for you to miss God's presence in your everyday life?

Like Moses, have you ever felt unqualified or inadequate for what God was calling you to do? Why?

What challenge or calling in your life feels impossible without Jesus?

Jacob spent his entire life trying to secure blessing, identity, and control through his own strength, only to discover that true change came when he finally surrendered to Christ. In his wrestling match with God, Jacob received a new identity and a lasting testimony, reminding us that Christ changes people not through self-improvement but through surrender, transformation, and dependence on Him.

Christ Wants Your Surrender

Christ Changes Your Identity

Christ’s Work is Our Testimony 

Life Group Discussion:

What is something you tend to hold onto tightly for security, control, or identity, and how might that be keeping you from fully trusting Jesus?

Can you think of a specific way Jesus has changed your desires, priorities, or character since you began following Him?

If you had 10 seconds to share your testimony, what would you say about who you were before Christ, how you met Him, and how He has changed you?

When waiting turns into doubt, Jesus meets us where we are and reminds us that His timing and ways are greater than our own. Abraham and Sarah's story shows that nothing is too hard for God, and what begins in cynicism can end in celebration when we trust His promises.

Christ comes close in the waiting

Christ is counterintuitive 

Christ confronts the cynic 

Life Group Discussion:

What is something you're currently waiting on, and how has that waiting affected your faith?

Have you ever had a plan for your life that God seemed to completely rewrite? What happened?

What's the difference between honest doubt and cynicism toward God?

Jesus doesn’t just show up for the polished and put-together, He pursues people in the middle of their mess, pain, and wilderness seasons. Through Hagar’s story in Genesis 16, we see that Christ is personal, present, and powerful enough to take the broken pieces of our lives and turn them into something full of purpose, hope, and redemption.

Christ Pursues You in Your Pain

Christ is Personal and Pastoral

Christ has Plans Beyond Your Perspective

Life Group Discussion:

Why do you think pain often becomes the place where people experience God most deeply?

In a culture that often values image over honesty, what keeps us from being real with God and others about what we’re going through?

What broken part of your story have you struggled to believe God could use for good?

Can we trust the Bible? Are spiritual gifts still active? What role do demons play, and how do free will and predestination coexist? John Elmore reminded us that Scripture is not only historically trustworthy, but powerfully transformative, calling us to trust God’s Word, stay spiritually alert, and boldly live on mission through the power of Christ in us.

How Do We Know the Bible is True

Are Spiritual Gifts Still Active Today

What Role Do Demons Play in Our Lives

Predestination

Life Group Discussion:

What evidence or experience has most strengthened your trust in the Bible personally?

When you hear about gifts like prophecy, healing, or tongues, what reactions or assumptions come up for you?

Which area of spiritual warfare mentioned in the sermon feels most real or relatable in your life right now?

How does knowing God is both sovereign and personal encourage you in your faith?

Matthew 6:5–13, James 1:6–7, James 4:3, James 5:16–18, Philippians 4:6–7, Psalm 34:4, Luke 11:13, Psalm 66:18, 1 Peter 3:7, 2 Corinthians 12:7–9, Proverbs 15:22, Romans 8:16, 2 Timothy 3:16, John 10:27

Prayer isn’t about performing or getting perfect answers, it’s how you build a real relationship with God, who already knows your needs but still wants you to come talk to Him. Even when prayers feel unanswered, God is at work shaping you, and you learn to recognize His voice through His Word, His Spirit, and people around you.

We pray because it builds our relationship with God

God is often using what we’re asking Him to change to change us

We discern God’s voice using His Word, His Spirit, and His people 

Life Group Discussion:

What tends to get in the way of you consistently praying, busyness, doubt, distraction, or something else?

Can you think of a time when something you prayed for didn’t change, but you did? What was different in you afterward?

When you feel unsure if something is from God or just your own thoughts, which of the three, Scripture, prayer, or community, do you tend to rely on most? Which do you neglect?